Ral Related Songs
The sound files on this page are no longer on-line. If you wish to hear any of these songs in MP3 format please e-mail tcwilson@rogers.com specifying the song title and singer.
The website was frequently disabled due to bandwidth limitations with current ISP (low monthly traffic allowance) - when the limit was reached the site was immediately disabled by ISP and would not be available until the 1st day of the following month.
Crying For Laura
Dale Ward - This song has no connection to Ral but Dale's style has Ral Donner stamped all over it! This song was issued on Dot 16590 in 1964. Dale's biggest hit was "Letter To Sherry" in 1963. Anyone know what happened to Dale and how to contact him? I am looking for any other tunes by Dale Ward on WAV, MP3 or Real Audio.
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Girl Of My Best Friend
Jim VanHollebeke - Another fine home recording (December 2001) from Jim.
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Girl Of My Best Friend
Lou Martucci - a 2001 home recording by Philadelphia musician and singer Lou Martucci. Lou has been a Ral Donner and Elvis fan since day one - he has also recorded a tribute to Elvis CD entitled "Remembering ELVIS".
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Girl Of My Best Friend
Doug Church - turn your collar way up for this one! No, it's not the version by Ral or Elvis but a recent recording by numero uno Elvis sound-alike Doug Church (the Voice of Elvis). This song is from Doug's CD "The Voice of Elvis Sings: Elvis the 60's - disk 1".
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Girl Of My Best Friend
Bryan Ferry - a very unusual sounding 1993 version of Ral's first hit record. Bryan formed the well known UK band "Roxy Music" in the early seventies and he has also had a successful solo recording career for over 30 years.
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I Got Burned
Shakin' Stevens - From the 1979 album "Take One". This has a countryish backing, quite a departure from the usual Shaky style. Shaky went on to have many hits in England during the 1980's.
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I Got Burned
Merv Benton - A 1965 recording by Australian R'n'R sensation Merv Benton. This was the 'B' side of his "Cincinnati Fireball" single released 1965. Taken from the CD "Merv Benton - Greatest Hits: 1964-1967" issued 2002 on Canetoad Records CTCD-031 (Australia only).
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If I Had You
Con Archer - Canadian singer Con Archer does a nice job on this song. He really sounds like Ral on this single - probably the best Ral Donner soundalike record ever made. It is the flipside of his 1971 single of DON'T LEAVE ME NOW (BOOT BT-010). Many thanks to Don Lance for supplying this gem. Con had several hits in Canada including "She's Not You", "Happy Anniversary" and "Sandy" - sadly he passed away on January 9th 1988 at the age of 46.
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Mr. Lucky
Joey Madrid - issued 1963 on USA 734. Written by for Joey by Ral Donner. Joey was Ral's piano/keyboard player in the sixties. Session personnel: Joey Madrid (piano & lead vocal), Dan Pawlak (drums), Earl Hensley (bass guitar) and Jack Burke (guitar). This single is extremely hard to find, in any condition!
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Please Don't Go
Billy Fury - excellent 1962 version! To find out more about this great UK singer and to listen to other tunes visit the best Billy Fury site on the Internet. Click here --> Billy Fury - the Story
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Second Miracle
Jeff MacQueen - Nice job on this Ral Christmas song from 1962! Yet another home recording from 2001.
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See Saw
Joey Madrid - flipside of Mr. Lucky. Originally recorded by The Moonglows.
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So Close To Heaven
Jeff MacQueen - Jeff does a great job on this Ral Donner classic! Again a home recording from 2001.
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So Close To Heaven
Rupert - a good version. This is really Malcolm Halsall from Scunthorpe, UK and he normally goes by the stage name of "Raving Rupert"! From the Rupert LP CRUISIN' (1980).
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Spanish Perfume
Jimmy Rice - former drummer with Ral's group "The Gents". Jimmy sounds a lot like Ral on this recording from 1965.
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The Grass Is Always Greener
Jimmy Rice - the other side of "Spanish Perfume" on Red Bird 10-022 issued 1965. To me this is more like Ral than "Spanish Perfume". Love that "Disastures" line! Anyone know what happened to Jimmy??
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Turn Back The Clock
Jim VanHollebeke - from Redford, Michigan. Why Ral's version was never issued as a single is hard to understand. Jim does an outstanding job with this tune! A December 2001 home recording with Jim accompanying himself on guitar.
Click here for Jim's site and contact info ----> Jim's Website
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Will You Love Me In Heaven
Pete Hutton - from the UK. A terrific version by Pete that was recorded in 2007.
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Jack Good. - (credited to Big Jim Sullivan Combo).....an unusual 1961 UK cover. What makes this version different is that the vocalist is none other than Jack Good. Jack produced such ground breaking TV shows as 6-5 Special, Oh Boy!, Boy Meets Girl... to name but a few. He also produced the very successful London West End Musical "Elvis". This is the only known example of Jack's vocal talent. The 45 is credited to Big Jim Sullivan but Jim only supplies the guitar backing. Scroll to the bottom of this page for Big Jim's story regarding this single!
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Wayne Newton - a commendable 1990 version of the Ral Donner classic! This recording surprised me in so far as it's a lot better than I expected. Way to go Wayne! You have to turn up your collar for this one - uh huh huh...oh yeah!!
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Ronnie McDowell - modern sounding version from 1978 or 1979 without "uh huh huh" and "oh yeah". Turn your collar back down for this one. Ronnie does an excellent job on this song taken from "In The Beginning" - an album only sold at his concerts. If Ral were here today to re-record this classic, I feel that he would arrange it in a similar fashion to this.
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Con Archer - Canadian singer Con Archer does a nice job on this Ral classic. This is the best of three versions by him. This one was recorded in 1973 and was never released! Two country versions were recorded in 1977 - one of which came out on a 45 in 1977 on the obscure Largo label (L-701) only released in U.S.A. Many thanks to Don Lance for supplying this unissued gem! Con had several hits in Canada including "She's Not You", "Happy Anniversary" and "Sandy" - sadly he passed away on January 9th 1988 at the age of 46.
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Ty Tender - Austrian singer (Elvis sound-a-like). From his CD "Back To The Roots" (2003). Website: http://www.tytender.com/neu/index_e.php
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You Don't Know What You've Got
Johnny J. & Hitmen - From their CD "J-Walkin' Bones" (1994).
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You Sang From The Heart
Jeff MacQueen - Jeff is from Love's Park, Illinois. Jeff wrote and sings this sincere tribute to Ral Donner. This is a home recording from 2001 with Jeff accompanying himself on acoustic guitar. Finished version below. As far as I know this is the first and only Ral Donner tribute.
You Sang From The Heart (Finished Version)
To contact Jeff via e-mail click here
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Young Lovers After Midnight
Dale Ward - another Dale sings Ral tune (issued on Dot in 1965). The ending is 100% Ral Donner!
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Notes in reference to Jack Good's version of "You Don't Know What You've Got" .(taken from an e-mail from Big Jim Sullivan)
........the story behind the track is quite interesting. I was at Marty Wilde's house and Jack Good was there. He was raving about the Ral Donner single and said that we should cover it. I suggested that Jack should sing it himself. I had heard Jack sing and he sung well. The reason I was with Jack and Marty was the fact they wanted to record me with a friend of ours called Trevor Peacock. It was a comedy record titled "Hot Hiss Of Steam" and I was to be the guy who squirted a soda syphon over Trevor when he sang a certain line. The single was to come out as a joint affair with Trevor and myself. Jack then came out with the idea that we can kill 2 birds with 1 stone. He would sing the Ral Donner song and put it on the B side of the record under my name. You can imagine how I felt but I went with the idea and the end product was that single. The B side became the A side and it got into the bottom end of the charts. I never sung a note. That's the saga of "You Don't Know What You've Got". Everybody thought it was me, even today I still get people asking me to sing it. I hope this will clear the air and end the mystery.